The house always wins. In the National League Division Series between the Brewers and Cubs, the home team won every game. Game 5 ended up being the lowest-scoring game of the series as both teams were without trusted starters and turned to their respective bullpens. Scoring was limited to four solo home runs, and although the Cubs hit 57 more home runs than the Brewers in the regular season and two more in the NLDS, the Brewers hit power down the stretch. They beat the Cubs 3-1 on homers from William Contreras, Andrew Vaughn and Brice Turand and will host the Dodgers in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Monday.
As they did during the regular season, the two teams came as close as possible to splitting the series. The Cubs won the regular season series 7-6, and the Brewers now won the division series 3-2, with the two teams tied at nine. The Cubs will return to Chicago to figure out how to improve a lineup that currently has a massive, Kyle Tucker-shaped hole in the outfield. The Brewers will reach the Championship Series for the fourth time in franchise history and first since losing to the Dodgers in 2018. Seven years later, they will have a chance for revenge.
Although the bullpen game involves a lot of mixing and matching, the early plans appear to be well-written. Milwaukee came out of the gate with a big gun, hoping Trevor Megill could become the first pitcher in the entire series to hold the Cubs scoreless in the first inning before Pat Murphy gave up four runs to Jacob Misiorowski. After that, the rest of the Brewers bullpen was ready to play thanks to Friday’s off day. “The pitchers, me and Matt Arnold, we just sat in a room and talked about the possibilities and considered a lot of factors,” Murphy said at his pregame press conference. “But we settled on Megill. He was going to play tonight no matter what.”
The Cubs started off with Drew Pomeranz and then got Colin Rea to complete a command. “I think both sides recognize that the first game is a pretty important game in this series,” Craig Counsell said before the game. “We went with a guy who pitched really well.” After that, they could choose to bring in starter Shota Imonaga or mix it up with the bullpen. Although Imamaga warmed up in the fourth inning, he never got on the field.
In the top of the first, Megill did his job, cutting the Cubs down in order with a 98.9 mph four-seam. Pomeranz tried the same trick at the end of the inning, throwing 23 pitches, 19 of them fastballs. His luck with the fastball ran out after the retirements of Jackson Jolio and Turang. Contreras reached out to smash Pomeranz’s 17th four-seamer, completely unfazed by its perfect placement in the outside corner. He pulled the ball over the wall in left-center, where Milwaukee bullpen catcher Adam Weisenberg caught it and raised his arms in triumph:
The Brewers took a 1-0 lead, but that lead didn’t last long. In the bottom of the second quarter, Misiorovski followed up the pace with more speed, replacing Megill’s 99-mph heat with a gas of his own that averaged 100.3 mph. But no success. Seiya Suzuki lifted it into his own bullpen in right center field with a 101.4 mph four-seamer in the outer half. A Cubs pitcher tried to replicate Weisenberg’s feat, raising his hat to catch a home run, but the ball knocked it out of his hands:
It was the first time Suzuki has hit a ball on a pitch that clocks 100 mph or faster this year and only the second time in his four-year MLB career. The Cubs tied the score at 1-1, but that was their last score. Misiorovski settled down and allowed just one runner on base over the next three innings. He pitched four innings, allowing three hits and striking out three to earn his second win of the series.
The Brewers took the lead in the fourth quarter. Rea followed Pomeranz and pitched well, allowing a sighting single to Caleb Durbin in the bottom of the second inning and a rare error by Dansby Swanson in the third. Rhea struck out the first two Brewers he faced in the fourth inning, but he left a cutter in the middle of the plate for Vaughn, which he completely knocked out. The ball went over the leaping Happ and the Brewers took a 2-1 lead. Vaughn let out the devil’s horn as he rounded first base:
Chicago’s only real threat came in the top of the sixth when Murphy replaced Misiorowski with left-hander Aaron Ashby. This makes sense from a platoon perspective, as the Cubs have the top players on their roster, including left-handers Michael Busch and Tucker. Still, it’s a questionable move. Ashby pitched in three of the first four games, going 4 1/3 innings and allowing four runs, three of which were earned. Moreover, Chicago’s roster brass has had two opportunities to become familiar with him. Things immediately went awry. Busch singled on a grounder to center field, then Ashby hit Nico Holner to advance runners on first and second with no outs. Ashby struck out Tucker and his night was over. Murphy would never let him face the right-hander Suzuki, who had already taken him deep in the second game. Chad Patrick continued his dominance as he held the Cubs scoreless in three games in the series. He retired Suzuki with a fly ball, then froze Happ with a perfect chip shot to the outside corner for third out. The Cubs only reached base again in the final three innings. Meanwhile, the Brewers are getting ready to restock.
Andrew Kittredge reached the bottom of the sixth inning and Counsell walked him out in the seventh, hoping the righty would have four outs for the third time all season and the first since the Fourth of July. This is just too much. After retiring the first two batters he faced, Kittredge led off Turang with a slider to the outside of home plate. Turang hit a very smooth swing, and even though the ball was sent deep into the park, everyone in the building knew it was done. Turang continued to follow, and Kittridge turned to watch the ball. In one beautiful moment, both players raise their right arms and tilt their heads back, following the ball:
400 feet away, Pete Crow-Armstrong took a wild leap over the fence, but the ball bounced off the back wall 20 feet in the air. The Brewers put together a crucial insurance run to lead by more than one run for the first time since the fourth inning of Game 2:
With a 3-1 lead, Murphy called on Abner Uribe for the final six shutouts. After striking out more than 30 percent of the batters he faced this season, Uribe didn’t strike out any Cubs, but he still shut the door on them. He worked at a rapid pace, allowing just one base hit to Busch in the eighth inning and needing only 22 pitches to end Chicago’s season. The Cubs finished the game with just four hits and one walk. Aside from Suzuki’s home run, they had only one runner past first base.
In a two-bullpen game, the bullpen is truly the star. The two teams combined for just 10 hits. Dubin and Busch were the only players with multiple at-bats. In the main role, Misiorovski got the win and pitched the longest, but the Brewers’ Megill, Ashby, Patrick and Uribe failed to score. The Cubs’ Daniel Palencia, Caleb Thielba and Brad Keller all had no runs scored. With neither team able to generate a run, the entire season came down to who could get the ball over the fence. Three doubles by the Brewers kept them going. In the NFC, they will face a Los Angeles team that they swept twice in the regular season. If they’re going to take the Dodgers’ third series, they’re definitely going to need more Zero in the bullpen.
